I'm not too good with drums but I am hoping to learn. I've got Sonar Home so theres no step sequencer in there but I am using the PRV to do the same job. Are there any good tutorials our there about how to construct a good sounding drum beat. I found one: http://www.iub.edu/~emusic/361/drumpatterns.htm So I am looking for more like that (hopefully video, a a website link is OK)...

I would suggest looking for some free midi drum pattern librarys. Not just to use, but also to study. By seeing that midi track it allows you to better understand how drum patterns are constructed. The problem with a lot of the pay librarys is a lot of the midi tracks are over-played by some drummers. Sometimes almost making the track unuseable. Like anything else in a DAW preset, you may have to trim out some hits to make it more useable.

Here is MPD/MPC master Jeremy Ellis' series on finger drumming. Although he is playing live on a pad controller you can glean a lot of how to put together drum parts from these vids. http://www.youtube.com/wa...E&list=RD02VWBR20IxpTo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k83UVo1OiKA
THIS EXPLAINS BASIC MIDI

this will give you a good idea on the best ways to use midi without the step sequencer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juIu9Rlt6v8

Also here's a vid series on Groove3 about drum theory. http://www.groove3.com/str/drumming-explained.html You have to pay for it though but there are a couple free sample vids on that list you can check out. I haven't watched the series myself but Eli Krantzberg vids are insanely helpful IMO so it's probably worth paying for a month membership ($15 right now apparently) or buying the download for $25.

The PRV is a step sequencer.

It also has a smart tool... but don't let that scare ya.

:-)





Start with Kick, Snare, Kick, Snare, and pretty soon you'll be tweaking velocities on tom rolls.


best regards,
mike

Thanks Chuck, for the basic overview on 3 ways to midi drums.
It's easy to get confused until you have used it enough times.

Yeah, I'd say you're better off learning how to program drum parts in PRV vs. the step sequencer anyway. It's a lot more flexible and more representative of how a drummer would view an entire piece of music. The ss is cool for just laying down some quick grooves for hip hop/dance stuff but for more traditional stuff the PRV is definitely the way to go. Sounds like you already know how to use it and are just looking for more drum theory based advice. If not my apologies. Lots of good vids on using the PRV out there (including the ones Charlie posted) but if you want more I could dig some out of my bookmarks folder. Cheers.

I found this very helpful when I was starting with PRV programming:

Thanks everyone, good info there. Also, can I ask what good track effects you add to change the feel of your drums. I know about reverb, but what all else do you use?